- Jess Fox powered through to win first the C1 Olympic gold
- Mallory Franklin the second British woman to win canoe medal
There was joy for Great Britain’s Mallory Franklin at the Kasai Slalom Canoe Centre as she produced a nerveless slalom paddle through 25 treacherous gates to take the Olympics silver medal behind Jess Fox of Australia.
Franklin narrowly missed out on becoming Team GB’s first gold medallist at Tokyo 2020, leading the field right up to the final run. But Fox is canoeing aristocracy, and came to Tokyo as a powerful favourite. Going out last she produced a devastating paddle, clinical in the turns and imperious in the final sprint, destroying Franklin’s own fine time before celebrating with a heartfelt hug on the quayside with her mother, Myriam, who is also an Australian coach.
